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Saab finds a buyer

The 9-5 was one of the last models Saab produced before ceasing production in 2011 Photo by David Arnouts

Bankrupt automaker Saab has found a buyer. But instead of picking up where the Swedish firm left off, the buyer plans to use Saab's resources for the production of electric cars.

The new owners of Saab, a Chinese-Swedish investment group with Japanese backing called National Electric Vehicle Sweden AB (NEVS), did not release details on how much it paid for Saab or how much it planned to invest in the company. Early in 2012, Saab administrators reported that up to six parties had expressed interest in the firm, including Zhejiang Youngman Lotus Automobile, based in China. At last report, the bid from that company exceeded $567 million.

NEVS did tell Reuters that the company would start a new operation in Trollhättan, Sweden, and that it expects to start selling its first model, based on the Saab 9-3, in early 2014.

Initially, the sales and marketing of the car will be focused on China, but it will eventually expand to the rest of the world. What is being described as “a completely new model based on Japanese technology and a future Saab platform” is also promised by the company.

Not all of Saab's assets were transferred in the sale. The Swedish state owns the spare-parts business, the rights to the 9-3 and the Phoenix development platform. GM retains the rights to and licenses for the 9-5 and 9-4X.

NEVS told Reuters that talks were ongoing regarding the fate of the Saab brand, currently controlled by the former carmaker and the aerospace and defense group of the same name. This means that while NEVS acquired Saab's assets, it can't yet brand any vehicles that it produces as Saabs.

Saab hasn't turned a profit in two decades and it hasn't produced any cars since halting production in March 2011. GM acquired 50 percent of Saab in 1990 and the remainder in 2000. Saab was sold to the Dutch supercar maker Spyker NV in February 2010 before being declared insolvent at the end of 2011.